important

The former president said the unspecified form of cancer was discovered during surgery to remove a mass from his liver on August 5. In the short statement, the 90-year-old revealed that the cancer has spread to other parts of his body. However, the former commander-in-chief said he still plans to pursue a treatment plan with Emory Healthcare, the largest healthcare provider in his home state of Georgia. Carter is the second oldest of the four living U.S. presidents and said a “more complete” public statement on his condition is expected to come next week.

Diagnosis

The shockwave rippled for miles. China’s state broadcaster says a shipment of explosives detonated inside a container terminal late Wednesday night in the major port city city. Witnesses who captured the giant mushroom cloud on their phone cameras were in some cases bowled over by the blast, which initially blew at 11:30 p.m. local time but triggered several more explosions. Local hospitals have admitted hundreds of injured, and at least 44 people have died, with the death toll likely to rise.

Deadly Blast

Poor judgment is to blame. So says Arlington Police Chief Will Johnson, who has fired rookie Officer Brad Miller following last Friday’s fatal shooting of 19-year-old Christian Taylor at a car dealership. Miller entered the building, where Taylor was allegedly damaging property and threatening to steal a car, Johnson says, without proper coordination or backup. “Cascading consequences” then led to Taylor being shot four times in a case that police are investigating against a backdrop of national tensions over racial injustice.

Deadly Error

Can she keep a secret? Clinton says she didn’t handle classified materials on her personal email as secretary of state. Yet federal officials aren’t so sure, and the inspector general reports that 2 out of 40 messages he’s been allowed to review were indeed “top secret.” The State Department claims those emails weren’t marked as classified when they were sent. But in a bid to clear up the matter — and salvage her lead in the Democratic primary, where Bernie Sanders is pulling forward — Clinton has instructed staff to hand over her server and backup thumb drive.

Return to Sender

Yesterday they said it was a one-off, but China’s central bank did it again today, fixing its currency down 1.6 percent against the U.S. dollar. This saw the yuan fall nearly 2 percent in afternoon trading. While perhaps good for Beijing’s exports, a weaker yuan hurts global competitors by cheapening their products in the Chinese market and reducing profits. Global stocks are responding in kind, with the pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index and Germany’s export-reliant DAX down by more than 2 percent, and many wonder how low they will go.

New Low

Was it just a frustrated outburst? Abdullah al-Thinni, interviewed last night on a Libyan television network, angrily responded to questions from dissatisfied citizens, telling the host “I officially resign, and I will submit my resignation … on Sunday.” But his spokesman said Thinni — who notably threatened to quit in 2014 as well — wasn’t serious. The prime minister, based in eastern Libya since armed rivals forced him to flee Tripoli last year, plans instead to continue ruling the terror-plagued country until the people demand otherwise.

Briefly

intriguing

President Obama taught law once, too. Now another respected member of the profession is eyeing the White House from the Ivory Tower. But Lawrence Lessig says his only ambition is to pass a Citizens Equality Act that protects the right to vote, ends gerrymandering and reforms campaign finance. He’s promising that his tenure would be “a very short period of time, ideally a day,” with his veep then taking the helm. Lessig’s crowdfunding his campaign, and says he’ll make his candidacy official if he raises $1 million by Labor Day.

Long Shot

The drama is intoxicating. A single thread about how to grow drug-producing plants could get the popular social news site banned in Russia. The country’s telecoms watch dog, Roskomnadzor, says it has asked the company to remove the offending discussion. But Reddit has thus far refused to respond, prompting the regulator to issue a Wanted poster featuring the site’s alien mascot. It’s unlikely editors will pull down the drug-related thread, and Moscow may soon decide it’s high time to pull the plug.

Slurred Speech

Where’s the beef? Probably on a boat. The international export of livestock is a billion-dollar business that’s growing fatter by the year. As demand for protein skyrockets, exporters like the U.S. and Australia, which saw live animal shipments increase 79 percent between 2012 and 2014, are shipping millions of dollars worth of still-mooing cows around the globe, sometimes as many as 53,000 at a time. And while animal rights groups are raising a stink — nearly 80 percent Down Under want it banned — this cash cow is unlikely to sink.

Udder Disarray

They’re betting you’ll fall in love all over again. The tragic but romantic film so many fell for in 2004 is being adapted into a TV series for The CW Television Network. Author Nicholas Sparks is on board with the project — still in the very early stages of development — and Todd Graff will write the script and help Sparks executive produce, alongside Theresa Park. While Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams are unlikely returnees, the show will follow their characters, Noah and Allie, as they build their lives together.

Tearjerker

He supposedly didn’t put his money where his mouth was … and it got punched. New York’s starting quarterback Geno Smith may be out for two months with a broken jaw following a locker room fight with teammate Ikemefuna Enemkpali. The players were reportedly arguing over Smith’s refusal to pay Enemkpali $600 for a plane ticket when the linebacker — who’s been released from the team — “sucker-punched” the QB, said Coach Todd Bowles. He called the incident “very childish” and said Smith, who faces surgery, isn’t guaranteed his starting role.